Word Origin & History

dangerous early 13c., "difficult, arrogant, severe" (the opposite of affable), from Anglo-Fr. dangerous, O.Fr. dangeros (Mod.Fr. dangereux), from danger (see danger). In Chaucer, it means "hard to please, reluctant to give;" sense of "full of danger, risky" is from late 15c. Other words used in this sense included dangersome (1560s), dangerful (1540s). Related: Dangerously (c.1540).

Example Sentences for dangerous

Dangerous must have been your situation, Roger, whatever were your thoughts.

It would have been dangerous to let those desperate fellows get loose then.

Are there no other dangerous creatures infesting water, sir?

All the same he is one of the most dangerous men on the market at the present in town.

The situation was too dangerous to admit of further subterfuge.

The only dangerous animals are the crocodile, serpents, and other reptiles.

Now, it seems, you are willing to bribe the only dangerous witness.

The belief was common in the Orient that a woman was dangerous to her husband at marriage.

As the men so contentedly remained in the dangerous position, it may be inferred that they were as wise as the sergeant.